To make butter, beat or shake cold heavy cream until it turns to whipped cream, then keeps going until it breaks into yellow butter and thin buttermilk. Pour off the buttermilk, rinse the butter in ice water until the water runs clear, press out the liquid, and salt it if you like. That’s it: one ingredient.
On this page
Making butter yourself is a small, satisfying way to know exactly what’s in something you eat every day. It’s also a good use for cream from a local dairy, or a carton about to reach its date.
What cream should you use?
Use heavy cream. Under U.S. federal standards, heavy cream must contain at least 36% milkfat. Whipping cream can be lower, which means more buttermilk and less butter. The finished product is mostly fat: federal law defines butter as at least 80% milkfat by weight.
How much will you get? The UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) small-scale butter guide estimates that 1 litre of cream makes about 300–400 g of butter. Treat that as a rough guide; your yield depends on the cream.
Store-bought cream is already pasteurized. If you’re using cream straight from a farm, the FAO guide heats milk or cream to 80–90°C and cools it quickly before making butter.
How to make butter with a mixer
A stand mixer with the whisk, or a hand mixer in a deep bowl, is the fastest way.
- Fill the bowl no more than half full.
- Beat on medium. You’ll see soft whipped cream, then stiff peaks, then a grainy, pale-yellow stage.
- Suddenly the cream “breaks”: yellow butter clumps and a splash of thin liquid. Drape a towel over the bowl and drop to low speed.
- Keep going until the butter collects in a mass and the liquid is watery.
How to make butter in a jar
No mixer? Use a jar with a tight lid, about half full of cream, and shake. It takes longer and more arm work, and you’ll go through the same stages: sloshing, then thick and quiet, then a thump as a lump of butter forms in liquid. It’s a good job to share with kids.
Why rinse the butter?
Butter straight from the bowl still holds pockets of buttermilk. The FAO guide stresses careful washing to remove it: it lowers the water content and helps the butter keep longer.
Pour ice water over the butter, press and fold it with a spatula, pour off the cloudy water, and repeat until the water stays clear. Then keep pressing until no more droplets bead on the surface.
Tip: Keep everything cold while you rinse. Warm butter turns greasy and holds onto water. If it softens too much, chill it briefly and continue.
How much salt should you add?
Salt is optional. It adds flavor and helps the butter keep. The FAO guide suggests salting to taste, with about 10 g of salt per 1 kg of butter as a starting point. For a batch from one quart of cream, that works out to roughly 3–4 g. Work it in evenly and taste.
What to do with the buttermilk
The liquid you poured off is traditional buttermilk. It’s thinner and milder than the cultured buttermilk sold in stores. Use it within a few days in:
- Pancakes, biscuits and quick breads
- Sourdough bakes, in place of some of the water
- Soups, mashed potatoes or smoothies
How to make cultured butter
Cultured butter is made from cream that has been ripened with lactic bacteria first. It tastes fuller and tangier, and its buttermilk is tangy too.
The FAO guide adds about 50 ml of sour buttermilk or a mesophilic starter per litre of cream, covers it, and leaves it 24 hours at 18°C (about 64°F). At home, the easiest starter is store-bought cultured buttermilk with live cultures.
- Stir the cultured buttermilk into the cream in a clean jar or bowl.
- Cover and leave it somewhere cool, near 18°C, until it thickens and smells pleasantly tangy.
- Chill it before churning, then follow the steps above.
Start with pasteurized cream, and if it smells unpleasant or grows mold instead of thickening, throw it out.
Storing homemade butter
The FAO guide says to keep butter in a cool place, in a pot or wrapped in greaseproof paper or foil. In a modern kitchen, that means the refrigerator for what you’ll use soon and the freezer for the rest.
Homemade butter fits right alongside the other fats on your pantry staples checklist. If you buy beef in bulk, rendering tallow is the other half of a from-scratch fat supply. More skills are in the Pantry & From Scratch hub.
The recipe
How to Make Butter from Heavy Cream
- Prep30 min
- Cook—
- Total30 min
- MakesRoughly 300–400 g (about 10–14 oz) butter, plus buttermilk, from 1 quart (about 1 litre) cream
Ingredients
- 1 quart (about 1 litre) heavy cream, at least 36% milkfat
- Ice water, for rinsing
- Fine salt (optional): about 10 g per 1 kg butter, so roughly 3–4 g for this batch
- For cultured butter (optional): about 50 ml cultured buttermilk with live cultures
Steps
- Pour the cream into a large mixing bowl or stand mixer bowl, no more than half full, or into a jar no more than half full with a tight lid.
- Beat on medium speed (or shake the jar hard). The cream will become whipped cream, then stiff, then grainy and pale yellow.
- When the cream suddenly breaks into yellow clumps of butter and thin liquid, slow the mixer to low and beat until the butter gathers into a mass. Cover the bowl with a towel; it splashes.
- Pour off the buttermilk through a sieve into a jar and refrigerate it.
- Pour ice water over the butter, knead and press it with a spatula or wooden spoon, and pour the cloudy water off. Repeat until the water runs clear.
- Press and work the butter until no more water beads come out and the surface is smooth.
- If salting, sprinkle the salt over the butter and work it in evenly. Taste and adjust.
- Shape the butter, wrap it in parchment or greaseproof paper, and refrigerate. Freeze any you won't use soon.
Questions people ask
How long does it take to make butter from cream?
It depends on the cream's temperature and fat content and on how hard you beat it. With a mixer it is usually a matter of minutes; shaking a jar by hand takes longer. Watch for the stages rather than the clock.
Can I use whipping cream instead of heavy cream?
Yes, but heavy cream works better. Federal standards set heavy cream at 36% milkfat or more, while whipping cream can be lower, which means less butter per carton.
Why do you rinse homemade butter?
Rinsing washes out the buttermilk left in the butter. The FAO's small-scale butter guide notes that careful washing lowers the water content and helps the butter keep longer.
Is the liquid left over real buttermilk?
It is traditional buttermilk, the liquid left after churning. It is thinner and less tangy than the cultured buttermilk sold in stores, unless you cultured the cream first.
How do you store homemade butter?
Wrap it in parchment or greaseproof paper or keep it in a covered dish, and keep it cold. Refrigerate what you'll use soon and freeze the rest.